Salon Series
What is a Salon?
Dating back to the literary and philosophical movements of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century France, a salon is “a fashionable assemblage of notables (such as literary figures, artists, or statesmen) held by custom at the home of a prominent person.”At the Heller Center, junior faculty present their research to the campus and wider Colorado Springs community. The audience may choose – or not - to read a pre-posted selection of the professor’s writing before the event. After a brief lecture, the floor opens for questions and conversation – all with wine and cheese.
Thursday, October 2 * 7pm
Rebecca Wood
Assistant Professor, Dept. of Anthropology
Beliefs, Power, and Practice: How Language Ideologies Impact Native American Reclamation Efforts
This presentation will discuss issues facing Native communities in their language revitalization efforts, focusing on the dynamics of a western Montana community of practice.
Rebecca Wood is an Assistant Professor of Anthropology at UCCS. She teaches on language in culture, contemporary Native American communities, and ethnographic and linguistic methods.
Dr. Wood's research focuses on Indigenous and minoritized communities, with an emphasis on language change and revitalization. She also examines how outdoor sports intersect with culture, identity, and community.
Thursday, April 2 * 7pm
Jenna Rice
Assistant Professor, Dept. of History
"Special Ops Camels: Dromedaries, Bactrians, and the Specialization of Animals in the Macedonian Army"
The Macedonian army under Alexander the Great incorporated the intrepid Old World camelid in numerous ways. An investigation of two key campaigns reveals the creativity and logistical flexibility of the army and counters the current narrative that camels were of limited utility.
J. Rice received her master's and doctorate in history from the University of Missouri, Columbia where she specialized in Greco-Macedonian military and political history. From 2020-2022 she taught classical literature and Latin in the department of Classics and Philosophy at Westminster University; ancient combat history in the Honors College of the University of Missouri, and American colonial history at the Moberley Area Community College. She completed a post-doctoral fellowship in the History Department of the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs from 2022-2024. She has published with Arctos: Acata Fennica Philologica and has submitted papers for volumes with Verlag Dr. Kovac and Routledge concerning animal and military history in antiquity.
J. Rice researches ancient Greco-Macedonian socio-military history with a particular interest in the parameters of violence and massacre in antiquity. She also works in the field of human-animal studies (HAS) and the sociology of animal use in the military arena.
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Past Salon Series
